Exploring Zenobia's World. The Incredible Rise and Fall of the City of Palmyra

24 July 2008

I've been tagged!

I've been tagged by a delicious blog, foodvox, just when I was in the middle of writing about Marxist Gramscians and ZemZem.

Puzzled? So was I. I've never been tagged before.

Now you'll have to wait to find out what a zemzem is, as I postpone my serious stuff and play tag instead. (There's an impatient editor, too, thrumming his fingers on the desk, waiting for a chapter from me, but I'm used to that ... and can tough it out.) It's summer, after all.

The tag descended in a purely foodie line until it reached me. How does foodvox know that I'm a foodie at heart? Vibrations through the ether, perhaps. But tagged is tagged, and I'm a game old girl.

The rules:

1. Link to the person who tagged you. Done.

2. Post the rules on the blog. Doing.

3. Write six random things about yourself. Attempting.

4. Tag six people at the end of your post. Dare I tag a total stranger?

5. Let each person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog. They'll hate me.

6. Let the tagger know when your entry is up. Risky. What if they retaliate with a meme?

Six Random Things About Me

1. I'm a terrible procrastinator and a time-waster (but you already knew that).

2. In a previous existence, I was one-half of Weingarten & Chaplin b.v., an international direct marketing agency.

3. I had an unexpected encounter in a helicopter once and was fool enough to talk about it.

4. French provincial and Tuscan cooking mix very well and I bastardize frequently. As Sopater, the writer of a play called Lentil Soup, said, "I can carve meat for myself, and I know how to take Tuscan wines with any party of eight."

5. Speaking of wines, I am not named Weingarten for nothing. Old wine, but the flowers of new songs, as Pindar says.

6. I have never won anything in any lottery. I'm sure that tells something about me; but what?

These random remarks are not (to quote Plato) the light jests of a young and noble Socrates, but the serious thoughts of a tagger.

* The wonderful photo of a cat burglar (at the top of this post) is shamelessly stolen from I-know-not-who: sent to me by a friend, without any credits, I've not been able to find out who photographed (and photoshopped) it. If anyone knows the creator, please send me the name so credit may be given.

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About Me

I studied Classical Archaeology at the University of Oxford (M.Litt.) and am a member of the British School at Athens. I excavated for many years on Crete and on the Greek mainland and travelled extensively in the Middle East. I have lived and worked among the ruins of the three great Caravan Cities: Petra, Palmyra, and Baalbek. It was at Palmyra in Syria that I began to tell the story of Zenobia, Queen of Palmyra, and the rebellion that she led against imperial Rome. I was living within the grounds of the Temple of Bel, and at night, when the great gates of the temple were shut, I came closer to the spirit of the time and place than probably anyone has ever done before. I know that I felt very close to Zenobia, which made the book a joy for me to write.

IS THIS ZENOBIA'S REAL PORTRAIT?

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These are five blogs I enjoy reading the most, and without which life would be less interesting for me: David Meadows' Rogue Classicism is my number one go-to blog.... My second choice is Judith Weingarten's Zenobia - she covers strong ancient women, not just Zenobia, and since these warrior women are the subject of my next book, I love her lengthy well-researched posts. PHDiva"Judith Weingarten, author of The Chronicle of Zenobia: The Rebel Queen writes about gods, kings, war and chivalry here. Written with pace and verve it is a fantastic and exciting analysis."Mike @ Official Osprey Publishing Blog

"I really find Judith Weingarten’s blog to be excellent, and really worth any attention it can get." Thadd @ Archeoporn

"Short and spot on - it is an excellent piece of writing."Alun @ Clioaudio

"Judith's blog, Zenobia: Empress of the East is a treasure trove of insights into early history, but also the explorers, scholars and archaeologists who uncovered the ancient world."Martin@The Lay Scientist